


Boy Bands and Curled Fish Tails

by Jollyrancher1114



Series: Wait, Are You Playing Uno? Verse [3]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-08
Updated: 2020-10-08
Packaged: 2021-03-08 03:59:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26899312
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jollyrancher1114/pseuds/Jollyrancher1114
Summary: The date's here and Stiles was so,sounder prepared.
Relationships: Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski, Vernon Boyd/Erica Reyes
Series: Wait, Are You Playing Uno? Verse [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1911901
Comments: 4
Kudos: 97





	Boy Bands and Curled Fish Tails

Stiles knew he was being obvious. Erica’s snickering and Boyd’s countless sighs were more than enough to tell him that. But he really couldn’t do anything about it, it was taking all of his power not to jump the man. Derek just had to show up wearing the tightest clothes he owned and all through the night he’d insisted on playing games that allowed him to either bend down, flex his arms, lean over him, or all of the above. He closed his eyes and reminded himself that there were children around for the nth time that evening. Really, they’d only been there for a couple hours and he was reduced to this. He could never tell Derek the power he held over him. Ever. 

“Here.” Derek handed him another plush toy to add to the three he was already carrying. He gave him the stink eye as he reached for it and just as his fingers brushed the fur, the wolf pulled it back with a smirk. “You don’t have to take it, you know. I can give it to Isaac or one of my little cousins.”

“Shut up,” he stepped closer and rolled his eyes to hide his smile when the man held it above him. “You won it for me, of course I’m going to take it.”

“Then give me what you won back at the other booth.”

“Derek,” Stiles crossed his arms and stared at the man with all the seriousness he could muster. “I’m not going to give you a stupid little mirror with a boy band plastered on the back. All the things I’ve won are stupid so you just have to wait until I win something worthy of showing you.”

“Are you sure you’re not trying too hard?” Erica piped in from behind them. Stiles jumped, clutching his chest while she smirked at his reaction. 

Derek sighed at their antics and nodded to Boyd as he pulled Stiles out of the way from a running pair of teens. “I thought you guys were on the rides?”

“We were, but then I got hungry. We saw you guys and decided to check in on how things were going.”

“Good.”

“Terrible!”

Derek stared down at Stiles with a frown, wondering if he’d done something wrong so far. He’d been teasing him a little, but he was also keeping track of his scent and while there was some frustration there, the playfulness and amusement drowned it out by a long shot. Maybe it was the prizes? He glanced down at the three stuffed animals in Stiles’ arms and then at the kids mirrors and hair extensions that he held hostage in his front pocket. 

“Aw, what’s wrong? This is supposed to be fun!” Erica looped her arm around his shoulder and led him to where there was a large gathering of different food trucks. Boyd gave Derek a shake of his head before following them and Derek agreed to the sentiment as he fell in line with his best friend. 

“I haven’t won one damn game, can you believe that? These people are scammers! There was this one that I paid five bucks for, where you had to throw this ball at a CD to break it, right, and there was this kid in front of me and he didn’t even break _half_ but he got the biggest damn thing there was!” He threw his arm out in his annoyance and accidentally dropped one of the stuffed animals. He picked it up with a scowl but gently brushed the dirt off as he continued. “And then I go up and I break it completely, but as soon as I point to the surfing penguin the guy is all ‘Oh, you left a little piece and you have to get rid of everything in order to win the biggest one’! Can you believe that!” 

Erica blinked at him. “Wow.”

“Exactly! So all I left with was stupid hair extensions! And then the other one I played didn’t even let me get those so I had to get this stupid mirror!” He dug into his pocket and shoved the bright purple mirror into her face, jabbing at the wrinkled sticker on the back. “I don’t even know who these people are!” He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, letting it out in a long exhale as he relaxed his body. Despite everything that happened and the wrongdoings others had put him through, he couldn’t deny that this was the most fun he’d had in a long time. 

Derek held in his laugh at his friend’s expression, having already gone through Stiles’ rants, and wished he had thought of pulling his phone out beforehand. 

“Stiles,” Boyd started slowly. “Are you okay?”

Stiles cocked his head. “Yeah, I’m fine. Why do you ask?”

Derek couldn’t contain it anymore. He leaned against Boyd as the laughter ripped itself from him and stared through blurry vision at Stiles grin and his friends’ shocked faces. He tried to explain himself through his chuckles but every time he made eye contact with one of them, he ended up laughing more. 

Stiles moved to tease him when the menu from a truck a couple yards down caught his attention. “Holy shit, they have fried oreos! I’ll be right back!” Stiles stuffed his prizes into Derek’s arms and made a beeline for the truck.

“What the- Derek, I have so many questions.” Erica turned to him with a baffled face and he snickered as he led them to a table. 

“Come on, I’ll explain it while we wait.”

* * * *

By the time Derek had caught them up with what had happened and Stiles returned with four bowls of his oreos, it was nearly dusk. A lot of people had started heading towards the hills to prepare for the fireworks, and no matter how hard Erica and Derek tried to talk him into going with them, Stiles refused.

“I’m not gonna go and watch the fireworks without winning a decent prize, Derek. Fireworks are for celebrating something and I’m not gonna celebrate what didn’t happen, in my case winning something good.” He popped the last oreo into his mouth and stared at him, the challenge clear in his eyes. 

Derek rolled his eyes and huffed. “You did win things, remember? If we don’t go now then all the good spots will be taken.”

“Exactly,” Erica nodded along. “There’s hardly any left so we have to go now.”

“Then why don’t you and Derek go save spots while Boyd goes with me to the games?” 

Boyd opened his mouth to object, but Stiles threw his arm over his shoulder and beamed at him. “You don’t mind, right buddy?” Boyd looked at Derek imploringly and grunted as Stiles pulled him up, not giving him the chance to answer. “We’ll be back soon, just save some spots for us, ‘kay?”

Erica nudged Derek’s arm. “Your boyfriend stole my fiance.”

He smiled at their retreating backs, grinning as Stiles forcefully dragged Boyd behind him. “Yeah. C’mon, let’s go find those spots. I don’t want to hear you complaining later.”

“Rude.”

“Rude.” Derek mocked, laughing when she snapped her teeth at him.

* * * *

Stiles finally did it. He’d won the best prize in the entire carnival, and the last one at that. He grinned as a kid saw it and tugged his friend’s sleeve, proclaiming that he wanted one too. Of course he did. Who wouldn’t want one?

Boyd glanced at him and smiled at his enthusiasm. “You’re really going to give it to him?”

“Of course I am! This is the first real prize I’ve won and I’m super proud, y’know!” He held up the fish and watched as it swam around in the bag. “I’m gonna name him Curly.”

“Curly? What kind of name is that?”

“Look at his fin,” he pointed it out to the taller man, stopping his stride so that he could see it better. “See how it’s kinda curved? Plus, he’s the color of curly fries.”

Boyd shook his head and mumbled something too low for him to hear. Stiles ignored him and followed the ground to the hills, scanning the people already there for Derek and Erica. “Hey, do you think they got a good spot?”

“Probably.”

“You don’t talk a lot, do you?”

“I have nothing to say.”

Stiles shrugged a shoulder. “You wanna hear a story from my high school days?”

“I’d say no but I get the feeling you’d tell me anyway.”

Instead of giving a proper response, he jumped into the horrors of his senior year. Stiles told him everything from how he’d had to confront Harris about a B- to how his dad had caught him walking out of a gay bar during one of his shifts. He’d even managed to get a chuckle out of Boyd when he mimicked his dad’s expression, which was a great accomplishment if he did say so himself. Stiles saw some kids running in their direction and moved Curly to his other side, sighing in relief when they didn’t bump into him. 

“Hey, we’re close to Derek and Erica, right? Can you sniff them out from here?”

“Stiles. There’s way too many people for me to do that. I’m bitten, remember? My sense of smell isn’t that great compared to born wolves.”

“Huh. Interesting.” Scott hadn’t told him that detail while he was visiting. Actually, he hadn’t told him anything since he’d gone on a ‘pre-honeymoon’ with Kira. Honestly, he needed to teach his friend how to be a bro and be more considerate, especially when he was spending hundreds of dollars just to see him. Shaking the thought off before he got any negative feelings, he followed Boyd to where he was assuming Derek and Erica were. 

Arms linked through his and Boyd’s and he looked down at the grinning blonde who was snickering at the bag he was holding. “I saw you guys on the way back from putting our stuff in the car. You won a fish for him?”

“Shut up! I can see how you two get along now. You were made for each other, really.” They laughed at his dry tone and Stiles immediately slumped into Derek’s side when he saw him, grinning into his shoulder when he felt the other man’s arm wrap around him.

“So? Did you win anything?”

Stiles perked up and shoved him away to reach behind his back and pick up Curly. “Close your eyes. Yes, really, don’t give me that look.” After Derek heaved a sigh and complied, he picked up one of his hands and turned it over so that his palm was facing upwards. “You gotta be careful. Don’t close your fist or squeeze too hard.”

“Just give it to me already.”

Stiles flicked his forehead and put the bag in his hand before he could do anything. “Alright, look at it.”

Derek peered down at the fish, looked up to Stiles’ proud smirk, and then back down. “You won a fish.”

“Be more excited! His name’s Curly and he’s adorable, okay? Definitely a stubborn one, too. That guy had to try seven times to put him in the bag. That shows character, Derek. Character.”

He smirked at the look on Stiles’ face and flicked his cheek, chuckling when he rubbed the spot with a frown. “Thank you. The name’s questionable, but I can deal with it.”

“Shut up, it’s a great name.” He looked behind him to the small vendor that was selling drinks and cotton candy. “I’m gonna go get something. You guys want anything?”

“I’m good, thanks.” Stiles shrugged and they watched as he got out of hearing range.

“You really like him, huh?” Erica asked with a smile. “If that were anyone else you wouldn’t have even accepted it.”

Derek looked down at the fish and shrugged. “He spent a lot of time trying to win something for me. He’s proud of it so I’ll take care of it.”

“Whipped.” She mumbled under her breath, gigging when Derek pushed her away. 

“Your boyfriend’s causing a scene.” Boyd announced. They looked to where he had nodded and Derek cursed when he saw Stiles yelling at a group of men. He was about half way there when a man made a swing at him and the snarl he released startled even himself at the power behind it. Silence dropped like a bomb all around him but he didn’t care, he was too busy rushing to Stiles. Stiles who was still arguing with the man like the complete _idiot_ he was. 

“I don’t know what’s up your ass but I suggest you pull it out before I do it for you.”

“See, look at you! You hang around those good for nothing mutts and you turn vulgar!”

“What do you mean good for nothing? I’ll have you know that over forty seven percent of werewolves are working alongside the most influential business CEOs today. They make up for more than half of our economic advances and if they weren’t here this country would be a hell of a lot more pathetic.” 

“Stiles,” He pulled the brunette to his side and made sure to keep a tight grip on him, noting how the human was shaking as he glared at the man. “It’s not worth it.”

“Like hell it is! How can you just stand there when he’s blatantly discriminating? There’s laws for that, you know. I can call up my dad and-”

“As fun as this is, there’s some security coming towards us and as much as I appreciate a man in a uniform, I’d rather not have another ticket on my record.”

“Good. I’d like to talk to them about-”

“Not happening.” Derek grabbed his hand and dragged him towards the entrance, sighing at the grumbles Erica was spewing. “Trust me, we’ve been dealing with this ever since the secret came out. It’s expected that people would be scared of what they don’t know.”

“It’s also expected that they be respectful. I mean honestly, I knew that there were still people like that out there but I didn’t think that they’d be so bold about it. If I had my bat on me I would’ve- Ow! Watch the head!” 

Rolling his eyes at Stiles’ shout, Derek shut the car door and settled into the driver's seat, sneaking a peek at him as he pulled out. “You tend to make a lot of scenes, huh? Were you in the drama club by any chance?”

“Shut up! I’m being serious.”

“So am I. If we were to do anything, we’d either be criticized or the blame would be put on us. That’s how it’s always been and how it’ll be for a long time.”

“Hmph.” It was quiet in the car, save for Erica’s somewhat flirty whispers to Boyd and his returning sighs. They just pulled into the parking lot of Stiles’ apartment that he shared with Danny when Derek slammed his foot on the brakes. 

“What the fuck, dude! Holy shit, I think I got whiplash.” Stiles groaned and leaned his head back against his seat, rubbing his forehead as he glared at his boyfriend(?).

“Stiles, I’m so sorry.” Derek looked down at his hands on the wheel and licked his lips before looking back at him, ignoring Erica’s irritated questions. “I forgot the fish on the hill.”

Stiles stared at him with an open mouth, opening and closing it while he tried to find the right response. Honestly, this man. He put his head in his hands to try to keep in his laughter but with the lingering anger at those men and now this, he really couldn’t help the way his shoulders shook with mirth.

“Stiles? Are you that upset? I can go back and get it, alright? We’ll go now just-”

His laughter tore out of him in waves and he was helpless to do anything but wipe away the tears as his humor filled the car. Eventually, Erica and Boyd were pulled into his joy and Derek was stuck between glaring at his friends and looking at him like he’d lost his mind. 

“Dude, Derek.” Stiles put his hand on the man’s broad shoulder while he took a minute to catch his breath. “It’s a fish. I can buy you another one at Walmart for like five dollars. Don’t sweat over it so much. Geeze, you’re adorable.”

“But you… I mean, you were so proud of it and-”

“Because I finally found a game where I could win something that didn’t have a damn boy band plastered all over it, that’s why I was proud of myself.” He tugged on Derek’s ear as he drew his arm back and wiped under his eyes one last time before grinning at his date. “I had a lot of fun. Honestly. Thanks for inviting me with you guys.”

Erica leaned forwards to put a sloppy kiss on his cheek, laughing when he wiped it off with a playful scowl. “We had fun, too. Isaac’s gonna be pissed that he didn’t get to see our dear alpha freak out, though.”

“No he won’t, because we’re not going to tell him.” Derek’s warning only made her laugh more and he sighed heavily as he turned his attention back to him. “I’m glad that you had fun. I did too, even though we nearly got kicked out.”

“Something to tell to the grand kids.” Stiles winked as he got off the car, his smile growing at the look on Derek’s face. “I’ll see you guys later, be careful on the way back.”

Derek watched as he left, the stuffed animals he’d won for him in hand. He managed to get his key card out of his pocket and maneuvered his way inside with one last wave to them. Warmth settled into his stomach and he welcomed the feeling wholeheartedly, nodding to himself as he pulled the car back onto the street, taking a left instead of going straight.

“Uh, Der? Our house is that way.”

“I know.”

“So where are we going?”

“Where do you think? I’m going back for the damn fish.”

Erica burst into hysterics a minute later, leaning on Boyd as her body shook. “Oh man, this is too much. You fell harder than I thought, huh?”

Derek hid his smile as he made eye contact with her through the mirror. “Shut up.”

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! Thank you for your interest in this series and sorry the update took forever - life has been crazy recently. I hope this can make your day a bit better!


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